Inflatable shelter and flexible wall therefor

ABSTRACT

A flexible inflatable shelter having an envelope of flexible sheet material reinforced by flexible cables which restrain the envelope in a predetermined contour and at least one vertical flexible wall suspended from the envelope to divide the interior of the shelter into separate compartments. The vertical wall is designed to move up and down with the envelope when the envelope is subjected to various wind conditions. The vertical wall is attached to the base or floor of the shelter in such manner as to limit excessive horizontal movement while permitting the vertical movement.

United States Patent [191 Milliken I [451 Dec. 31, 1974 INFLATABLE SHELTER AND FLEXIBLE WALL THEREFOR A 75 Inventor: Paul E. Milliken, Massillon, Ohio [73] Assignee: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, Akron, Ohio [22] Filed: Nov. 2, 1973 [21] Appl. No.2 412,073

[52] US. Cl 52/2, 52/238, 160/328 [51] Int. Cl E04b 1/345 [58] Field of Search 52/2, 238, 63; 160/349, 160/327, 328; 296/23 R, 27, 23 G; 135/14 D [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,687,170 8/1954 Johnson 160/349 3,024,796 3/ 1962 Bird 3,059,655 10/1962 Bird 3,130,406 4/ 1 964 .lones-l-linto 3,169,542 2/1965 Neumark 52/2 3,261,134 7/1966 Crist 52/66 3,496,686 2/ 1970 Bird Primary Examiner]ohn E. Murtagh Attorney, Agent, or Firm-F. W. Brunner; P. E. Milliken [57 ABSTRACT A flexible inflatable shelter having an envelope of flexible sheet material reinforced by flexible cables which restrain the envelopein a predetermined contour and at least one vertical flexible wall suspended from the envelope to divide the interior of the shelter into separate compartments. The vertical wall is designed to move up and down with the envelope when the envelope is subjected to various wind conditions. The vertical wall is attached to the base or floor of the shelter in such manner as to limit excessive horizontal movement while permitting the vertical movement.

15 Claims, 12 Drawing Figures PATENTEU 1 74 sum 1 or 5 PATENTEDUEE3 1 1914 i a; 857. 209

' sum 2 OF 3 SHEET 3 BF 3 PATENIEB BEB3 I I974 1x v a INFLATABLE SHELTER AND FLEXIBLE WALL THEREFOR This invention relates to a cable-reinforced inflatable shelter which is divided into compartments by one or more vertical flexible walls which are adapted to move up and down with the cover envelope of the shelter when it is subjected to varying wind conditions.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Inflatable buildings have been known for many years; however, recently there has been increased interest in such buildings for uses such as greenhouses, warehouses, recreation areas, andin pollution control. Typi cal examples of such structures are shownin US. Pat. Nos. 3,638,368, 3,661,693 and 3,762,108, all of which are issued to R. M. Pierson. This invention is particularly useful in inflatable shelters of the type shown in the above-mentioned patents and in particular with cable-reinforced shelters. While many of the 'prior art shelters have enclosed a single undivided area, there are some occasions when it is desirable to divide the interior of the shelter into separate compartments either to maintain different environmental conditions in various parts of the shelter or for other reasons; When such need exists, one of the problems is to provide a flexible curtain or wall which can be attached to the envelope or roof of the shelter and tothe. base'or floor of the shelter and which will tolerate the up and down movement of theroof or envelope which is caused by variations in wind conditions which exert forces on the outside of the envelope. I

OBJECTS'OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the invention to provide a vertical wall in an inflatable building which will adjust to variations in the distance between the roof and the floor caused by varying wind pressure on the exterior of the shelter. I

Another object of the invention is to provide a lightweight, flexible wall which'is easily attached to the roof and floor of an inflatable shelter.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a flexible wall in an inflatable building which will move up and down in the vertical direction but which will move-only a limited distance in the horizontal direction.

These and other objects will become more fully apparent as the description proceeds in the following specification and the attached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is a perspective view of an inflatable shelter having vertical walls dividing the interior of the shelter into separate compartments;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 2-2 of FIG. 1 showing a side elevation of one of the vertical walls used in the building of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view showing a vertical wall fastened to the roof and floor of an inflatable building;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side elevational view showing the manner of joining the vertical wall to the cablereinforced roof of an inflatable building such as that shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on line 5-5 of FIG. 4 and showing the manner in which the sheet material of the roof and vertical walls are joined together;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 5 but showing a modification of the manner of attaching the vertical -wall to the roof;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary view taken on line 7-7 of FIG. 3 showing one manner of attaching the vertical wall to the floor;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary perspective view showing another means for attaching the vertical wall to the floo of a building;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view showing another means of attaching the lower edge of the vertical wall to the floor of a building;

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary perspective view of a clamp for attaching a vertical wall reinforcing cable to a horizontal roof reinforcing cable;

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken on line ll1l of FIG. 2 and showing the manner in which the edge of the vertical wall is slidably retained in a door frame; and

FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view of a typical clamp used for attaching weights or other objects to a vertical wall reinforcing cable.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referringnow to FIG. 1 of the drawings, a cable reinforced inflatable building or shelter is indicated as a whole by the numeral 1. The shelter 1 is comprised of an envelope 2 made of a plurality of parallel strips 3 of flexible sheet material such as plastic or other suitable material such as rubberized fabric or the like joined together in edgeJo-edge relationship at seams 4 which are reinforced by cables 5 as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 and which will be described in greater detail later in the specification. A pair'of vertical flexible walls or curtains 6 extend between the floor 7 of the shelter and the envelope 2 which forms the roof. The upper edge of the vertical walls 6 is attached at one of the cablereinforced seams 4 as described later in FIGS. 5 or 6. Eachof the walls 6 has an access door 8 therein mounted in a rigid door frame 9 and outside entrance door 10 provides access in and out of the building. As may be seen in FIG. 1, the walls 6 divide the building into three separate compartments. Each compartment is provided with internal pressure by an inflation blower 11. On smaller shelters, a single blower may provide adequate pressure to all compartments by means of suitable ducting extending from the blower to the separate compartments. The envelope 2 and the cables 5 which provide reinforcement for the envelope are all anchored around the periphery 12 of the base or floor 7 of the shelter] to provide an airtight seal for maintaining internal pressure within the shelter.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3, the vertical wall 6 is shown as being made up of a plurality of vertical elongated strips 13 suspended from the envelope or roof 2 and attached to the floor 7.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show in detail the manner in which the upper edges of the strips 13 are joined to the envelope 2 at the seams 4. The strips 3 of the envelope 2 are fastened together at the seams 4 by folding 2 adjacent marginal edges of the strips 3 around the cable 5. In addition. the upper marginal edge of the strips 13 are folded around the cable 5 with the envelope strips 3. A flexible pressure strip 14 is placed on each side of the folded seam and a plurality of spaced apart spring clamps are clipped around the seam 4 with the cable therein and placed to bear laterally inwardly against the two pressure strips 14 to hold together the strips 3 and 13 firmly in position around the cable 5. This type of seam is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,661,693 except that in that patent only the two adjacent strips of envelope material are joined together at the seam and no vertical wall is included.

FIG. 6 shows a modification of the seam illustrated in FIG. 5. In FIG. 6 the strips 3 of envelope material are wrapped around the cable 5. However, these strips 13 are supported independently by clamps 16 which differ from the clamps 15 by having a reverse extension clamp portion 1.7 which retains the upper edge of the strips 13 which have been folded around a flexible edge reinforcing filler member 18 which provides an enlarged edge portion which is gripped by the clamp extension 17. The advantage of the seam shown in FIG. 6 is that the strips 13 may be removed without removing the clamps 16 from their gripping position around the cable 5. The advantage of the configuration shown in FIG. 5, however, is that the clamps 15 are simpler in construction. Either of these seams, as well as other suitable means, may be used to attach the vertical wall 6 to the roof or envelope 2. Each of the strips 13 are joined together at vertical seams 19. The strips 13 may be fastened at the seams 19 by any suitable means and the seams 19 may also contain reinforcing cables 20 attached in a manner somewhat similar to the means for attaching the roof strips 3 to the reinforcing cables 5 as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. When vertical cables 20 are used, they may be attached to the horizontal roof reinforcing cables 5 by a suitable two-piece clamp 21 as shown in FIG. 10. The clamp 21 is held on the cable 5 by a bolt 22 passing through the clamp. The upper end of each vertical cable 20 passes through the hole 23 in the lower portion of clamp 21 and is then secured in a loop by any conventional fastening means such as cable clamps or the like.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 7, the lower edge of the vertical strips 13 is fastened to the floor 7 by wrapping the edge around an edge reinforcing filler member 24 of plastic or other suitable material then clamping to reinforced lower edge to the floor by means of a clamping strip 25. The clamping strip 25' has a curved portion 26 which fits around the reinforced edge of the strips 13. A plurality of bolts 27 secure the clamping strip 25 in position against the floor. I

As shown in FIGS. '2, 3 and 7, a plurality of weights 28 in the form of elongated metal bars or the like are clamped by spring clamps 29 in a horizontal position a spaced distance above the floor'7. As shown in FIG. 7, the strips 13 are wrapped around the weights 28 and clamps 29 are fitted around the wrapped portion to hold the weights 28 in position. Since the strips 13 are suspended from the roof of the shelter, the weights 28 cause the upper portion 30 of the strips 13 to be held under tension while the lower portion 31 of the strips 13 is in a loose or relaxed condition due to the surplus material provided between the weights 28 and the clamping strip 25. With such an arrangement when the envelope 2 of the shelter moves up and down under variations in wind pressure, the upper portion 30 and the weights 28 will move up and down with the roof 2 while remaining in a vertical suspended condition. The weights 28 are sufficiently heavy to limit the horizontal shifting of the vertical wall 6 but are sufficiently light that they can be liftedby upward movement of the envelope 2. The lower portion3l below the weights 28 serves as an expansion portion which allows the upper portion 30 to ride up and down with the roof without putting excess tension on the strips 13 and without excessive strain on the roof seams 4 or on the floor clamping strips 25. When a door such as the door 8 in FIG. 2 is used in the wall 6, it is necessary to provide an expansion portion 32 above the lintel of door frame 9 similar to the lower portion 31. One .or more of the weights 28 are fastened a spaced distance above the lintel of door frame 9 to one of the strips 13 in the same manner that the other weights 28 are spaced above the floor 7. This provides the expansion portion 32. In order to permit the upper portions 30 to move up and down in relationship to the door frame 9 the side edges of the strips 13 which are adjacent to the door frame 9 are folded around one of the vertical cables 20 as shown in FIG. 11 and clamped by clamps 33 which slidably engage a vertical longitudinal slot 34 in the door frame 9. The edge of the strip 13 on each side of the door frame 9 may be slidably attached to the frame or removed by means of the removable plate 35 held in position by a plurality of bolts 36. Thus it may be seen that the entire upper portion of the wall 6 which lies above the weights 28 can move up and down freely in response to movement of the envelope or roof 2 and the lower portions 31 and 32 above the door frame 9 provide expansion portions to permit such movement without placing undue stress on the top or bottom ends of the strips 13.

Another means for providing vertical adjustment of the strips 13 is shown in FIG. 8 wherein the lower edge of each strip 13 is wrapped around the weights 37 and clamped in position by clamps 38. The weighted lower edge of the strips 13 is then slidably received in a horizontal upwardly facing slot 39 in a horizontal two-piece base molding 40 made of halves 41 and 42, both of which are bolted to the floor 7 by a series of bolts 43. If desired, the base molding 40 may be provided with louver's 44 on each half to permit air circulation from one compartment of the shelter to the other. The weighted lower edge of the strips 13 is wider than the slot 39 so that it will not pull out of the molding 40 but will ride up and down in the space between the halves 41 and 42. The weight holds the strips 13 under vertical tension while permitting them to move up and down with the envelope 2. The lower edge of strips 13 may be removed from the molding 40 by removing one of the halves 41 or 42 from the floor.

Another alternative to the embodiment shown in FIG. 8 is illustrated in FIG. 9 in which the same type of base molding 45 receives the lower edge of the strips 13. However, instead of using a weight such as 37 to maintain vertical tension on the strips, a plurality of springs 46 are used with each spring having one end anchored to the floor by an eyebolt 46a and the other end attached to the lower end of one of the reinforcing cables 20 which reinforce the vertical seams between the strips 13. The springs 46 permit the strips 13 to ride up and down with the movement of the roof 2 in the same manner as the weights 37 while maintaining sufficient tension to hold the strips'l3 in a substantially vertical position and prevent excessive horizontal shifting of the vertical wall 6.

in some instances it may be necessary to attach weights or other objects to the vertical cables 20. FIG. 12 illustrates a clamp 47 used to attach weights or other elements to vertical cables 20. The clamp 47 is comprised of two substantially identical halves 48 fastened together by bolts 49 passing through holes 50. The clamp halves'49 are used in face-to-face relationship and clamped around the cable with the J-shaped portion on one half extending upward and the J-shaped portion on the other extending downward so that they overlap each other and form a closed hole for retaining a weight or other object.

While cables have been shown herein to illustrate the flexible seam reinforcing members, it is also possible to use any other suitable flexible reinforcing members and the scope of the invention is not limited to the use of cables. Also, various types of flexible sheet material may be used for the envelope and the vertical flexible walls used therein.

Various means may be used for attaching the weights to the vertical strips or attaching the vertical strips to the roof or floor and various other modifications may be made in the embodiments shown herein without departing from the scope of the invention.

I claim:

l. A flexible wall for use in an inflatable enclosure having a flexible roof comprising:

A. a vertical flexible wall suspended inside the enclosure; a

B. means connecting the wall to the roof of the enclosure; a C. means connecting the wall to the floorof the enclosure; and

D. adjustment means-permitting expansion and contraction of the wall to continuously adjust the height of the wall in response to any changes in the height of the'roof when the enclosure is in an inflated condition,'while maintaining the wall under vertical tension to' prevent excessive horizontal movement of the wall.

2. A flexible wall as claimed in 'claimjl wherein the adjustment means comprises a rigid base portion attached to the floor of the enclosure and defining an upwardly facing channel which slidably receives the lower edge of the flexible wall, and means urging the lower edge of the wall downwardly into the channel but permitting it to .move up and down in the channel in response to movement of the roof to which the wall is connected.

3. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 2 wherein the means urging the lower edge of the wall downwardly is at least one weight attached to'the lower edge of the wall.

4. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 2 wherein the means urging the lower edge of the wall downwardly are stretchable tension members connected between the lower edge of the wall and the floor.

5. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 1 wherein the adjustment means comprises weight means attached to the flexible wall in a position spaced above the floor of the enclosure to exert downward tension on the portion of the wall above weight means, and a lower extension of the wall below the weight means connected to the floor and provided with sufiicient vertical length that it is not under vertical tension but permits the weight means and the wall above the weight means to move vertically up and down in response to movement of the roof of the enclosure.

6. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 1 including a fixed door frame supporting a door located in the vertical wall, said wall being vertically movable up and down relative to the fixed door frame.

7. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 6 including means to slidably attach the vertical wall to the door frame.

8. A flexible wall for use with an inflatable enclosure having a flexible roof comprising:

A. at least one sheet of flexible material suspended vertically from the roof of the enclosure;

B. said sheet having a tensioned upper portion and an untensioned lower portion extending between the upper portion and the floor;

C. the untensionedlower portion permitting up and down vertical movement of the sheet in response to movement of the flexible roof, while preventing excessive horizontal movement of the wall.

9. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 8 wherein each sheet of flexible material forming the wall is attached to flexible vertical reinforcing members which are attached to the roof of the enclosure.

10. A flexible wall for use in an inflatable enclosure having a flexible roof comprising;

A. an upper flexible wall portion suspended vertically from the roof within the enclosure and movable up and down in response to movement of the flexible roof; and

B. a lower wall extension portion extending from the bottom edge of the upper wall portion to the floor to form in combination with the upper wall portion a continuous barrier extending between the roof and the floor;

C. said lower wall extension associated with the upper wall portion in such manner as to permit vertical expansion and contraction of the wall in response to up and down movement of the roof.

11. A flexiblewall is claimed in claim 10 including weight means attached along the juncture of the upper wall portion and the-lower wall extension to maintain vertical tension on the upper wall portion, the lower wall extension havingsufficient length of material in the vertical direction to permit the upper wall portion to move up and down without the lower extension being put under tension.

12. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 10 wherein the lower wall extension is a rigid base portion attached to the floorof the enclosure and defining an upwardly facing channel which slidably receives the lower edge of the flexible wall and including means attached to the lower edge of the upper wall portion to retain it in the channel but permitting it to move up and down in the channel when the wall is moved vertically up and down in response to movement of the roof.

13. A flexible wall'as claimed in claim 12 wherein the means to retain the lower edge of the wall portion in the channel is at least one weight attached to said lower edge.

14. A flexible wall for use in an inflatable enclosure having a flexible roof comprising;

A. at least one sheet of flexible material vertically suspended within the interior of the enclosure; B. means attaching the upper edge of the sheet to the interior of the roof of the enclosure;

C. weight means attached to the sheet in a position spaced above the floor of the enclosure to exert a downward tension on the sheet and thereby retain it in a substantially vertical position; and

D. wall extension means spanning the distance between the weight means and the floor;

E. said sheet with said weight means thereon being movable up and down in response to movement of the flexible roof.

15. An inflatable enclosure comprising:

A. a flexible envelope being attached to a fixed base around its periphery to form a substantially airtight structure;

B. the envelope dimensions relative to the dimensions of the base inside the peripheral attachment being such that when internal inflation pressure is induced into the interior of the enclosure, the envelope will rise to a position spaced above the base; and

C. at least one flexible vertical wall suspended between the envelope and the base dividing the interior of the enclosure into separate compartments when the enclosure is in an inflated condition;

D. adjustment means at the lower portion of the wall permitting at least a major portion of the wall to move up and down in response to movement of the envelope from which it is suspended while maintaining the wall under vertical tension to prevent excessive horizontal movement of the wall. 

1. A flexible wall for use in an inflatable enclosure having a flexible roof comprIsing: A. a vertical flexible wall suspended inside the enclosure; B. means connecting the wall to the roof of the enclosure; C. means connecting the wall to the floor of the enclosure; and D. adjustment means permitting expansion and contraction of the wall to continuously adjust the height of the wall in response to any changes in the height of the roof when the enclosure is in an inflated condition, while maintaining the wall under vertical tension to prevent excessive horizontal movement of the wall.
 2. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 1 wherein the adjustment means comprises a rigid base portion attached to the floor of the enclosure and defining an upwardly facing channel which slidably receives the lower edge of the flexible wall, and means urging the lower edge of the wall downwardly into the channel but permitting it to move up and down in the channel in response to movement of the roof to which the wall is connected.
 3. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 2 wherein the means urging the lower edge of the wall downwardly is at least one weight attached to the lower edge of the wall.
 4. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 2 wherein the means urging the lower edge of the wall downwardly are stretchable tension members connected between the lower edge of the wall and the floor.
 5. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 1 wherein the adjustment means comprises weight means attached to the flexible wall in a position spaced above the floor of the enclosure to exert downward tension on the portion of the wall above weight means, and a lower extension of the wall below the weight means connected to the floor and provided with sufficient vertical length that it is not under vertical tension but permits the weight means and the wall above the weight means to move vertically up and down in response to movement of the roof of the enclosure.
 6. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 1 including a fixed door frame supporting a door located in the vertical wall, said wall being vertically movable up and down relative to the fixed door frame.
 7. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 6 including means to slidably attach the vertical wall to the door frame.
 8. A flexible wall for use with an inflatable enclosure having a flexible roof comprising: A. at least one sheet of flexible material suspended vertically from the roof of the enclosure; B. said sheet having a tensioned upper portion and an untensioned lower portion extending between the upper portion and the floor; C. the untensioned lower portion permitting up and down vertical movement of the sheet in response to movement of the flexible roof, while preventing excessive horizontal movement of the wall.
 9. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 8 wherein each sheet of flexible material forming the wall is attached to flexible vertical reinforcing members which are attached to the roof of the enclosure.
 10. A flexible wall for use in an inflatable enclosure having a flexible roof comprising; A. an upper flexible wall portion suspended vertically from the roof within the enclosure and movable up and down in response to movement of the flexible roof; and B. a lower wall extension portion extending from the bottom edge of the upper wall portion to the floor to form in combination with the upper wall portion a continuous barrier extending between the roof and the floor; C. said lower wall extension associated with the upper wall portion in such manner as to permit vertical expansion and contraction of the wall in response to up and down movement of the roof.
 11. A flexible wall is claimed in claim 10 including weight means attached along the juncture of the upper wall portion and the lower wall extension to maintain vertical tension on the upper wall portion, the lower wall extension having sufficient length of material in the vertical direction to permit the upper wall portion to move up and down without the lower extension being put under teNsion.
 12. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 10 wherein the lower wall extension is a rigid base portion attached to the floor of the enclosure and defining an upwardly facing channel which slidably receives the lower edge of the flexible wall and including means attached to the lower edge of the upper wall portion to retain it in the channel but permitting it to move up and down in the channel when the wall is moved vertically up and down in response to movement of the roof.
 13. A flexible wall as claimed in claim 12 wherein the means to retain the lower edge of the wall portion in the channel is at least one weight attached to said lower edge.
 14. A flexible wall for use in an inflatable enclosure having a flexible roof comprising; A. at least one sheet of flexible material vertically suspended within the interior of the enclosure; B. means attaching the upper edge of the sheet to the interior of the roof of the enclosure; C. weight means attached to the sheet in a position spaced above the floor of the enclosure to exert a downward tension on the sheet and thereby retain it in a substantially vertical position; and D. wall extension means spanning the distance between the weight means and the floor; E. said sheet with said weight means thereon being movable up and down in response to movement of the flexible roof.
 15. An inflatable enclosure comprising: A. a flexible envelope being attached to a fixed base around its periphery to form a substantially airtight structure; B. the envelope dimensions relative to the dimensions of the base inside the peripheral attachment being such that when internal inflation pressure is induced into the interior of the enclosure, the envelope will rise to a position spaced above the base; and C. at least one flexible vertical wall suspended between the envelope and the base dividing the interior of the enclosure into separate compartments when the enclosure is in an inflated condition; D. adjustment means at the lower portion of the wall permitting at least a major portion of the wall to move up and down in response to movement of the envelope from which it is suspended while maintaining the wall under vertical tension to prevent excessive horizontal movement of the wall. 